I'm Always Here
by Sliver Feather
Summary: What happens when a little girl moves to Pallet Town and experiences the life of high school as she grows up? I do not own Pokemon. Completely AU although there's going to be some similarities with the canon.
1. Chapter 1

_Hi! New revision is here! Enjoy! :) I took in what Alphinia said about the old version, so I hope this is an improvement!_

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><p>It was a sunny, serene, and peaceful day in Pallet Town. The Pidgeys were chirping, Butterfrees were flying, and the sound of a little girl...crying?<p>

"Serena, come on...moving isn't such a bad thing. Look around, don't you like your new home?" a woman asked. The woman looked like she was around her mid-twenties. She had short dark brown hair, a thick pink lower lip, and light cyan eyes. She wore a large yellow hair clip, a dark blue t-shirt, light green pants along with a light green jacket tied around her waist.

The woman's name was Grace, the famous Rhyhorn Racer from the Kalos Region, and she had just moved to Pallet Town with her only child, Serena.

Serena was a cute little eight-year old girl with honey-blonde hair. She had her mother's eyes and was currently wearing a pink sundress and pink sandals along with a straw hat with a pink band wrapped around it.

"Mommy...I want to go home…" Serena tugged her mother's jacket as she said this. The two were currently standing outside of heir new home, watching the movers and their Machoke carefully move their furniture.

"Don't worry about anything, Serena. This will be our new home and mommy can just join races in Viridian City! Now, we can spend more time together since it's just so close to Pallet Town!" Grace tried to reassure her daughter.

Serena just nodded, trying to find comfort in her mother's words.

Grace bent down to talk to Serena face to face.

"Serena, since it's your first day here in Pallet Town, I entered you in Professor Oak's Summer Camp to make all new friends," Grace said enthusiastically.

"Who's Professor Oak?" Serena asked.

"He's one of the teachers at Pallet High School and he is also a Pokemon researcher like our good friend Professor Sycamore," Grace informed her with a smile on her face.

"But I don't wanna..." Serena whined.

"This will be good for you! You can use this chance to meet new friends and Pokemon! As well as meet Professor Oak, who might be your future teacher!" Grace responded, rather aggressively.

Serena nodded once again, getting a little frightened by the tone Grace used.

With both of them in agreement, Grace walked Serena down a dirt path that lead to a large house on top of a hill. The house had a curved roof that was made up of flat roof tiles. The exterior had yellow wooden walls with bright blue windows. Behind the house, there was a gigantic windmill and large ranch filled with Pokemon.

As they were walking, they took notice of everything they passed by. The houses were so rustic and charming; most of them were painted white and had red roofs. Each house had their own garden or a front lawn, which Grace thought she could use as a practice area for her Rhyhorn Racing. However, the area they lived in was known for its old country feel. She knew that parts of the town like the Petalburg District were more modern and more technologically advanced. Her train of thought came to a halt as she was face to face with the gate of Professor Oak's laboratory.

"That's Professor Oak's laboratory. Serena, that's where you'll be going for today to get to know the other kids at Pallet Town, it was supposed to be a week but we weren't able to move in time," Grace informed her daughter as they walked up the steps and knocked on the door.

A man around the age of sixty opened the door. He had grey hair and tan skin, and also wore a pair of brown pants along with a white lab coat draped over a red shirt.

"Ah! You must be Grace! And this little one should be Serena, correct?" the researcher asked, cheerfully.

"Yes, we are. Would it be alright if I go back home to check on the movers, while I leave Serena here?" Grace questioned.

"Why, of course! Come now, Serena!" Professor Oak said, grabbing Serena's hand.

"Bye, Serena. I'll be back later to pick you up."

Serena nodded at her mother's words and let the Professor lead her to his ranch.

"Now, Serena, we're having a Pokemon Catching contest. Here is a list of Pokemon. You will go into the forest and look for a Pokemon on that list. The winner will be the one who finds the rarest Pokemon and he or she will also get to choose another participant who will get to keep the Pokemon he or she found. Don't worry about the Pokemon attacking, we showed them all of your pictures and told to follow any of the kids who are in this summer camp and you only get one chance at finding a Pokemon. If you already found one Pokemon, that Pokemon will stick to you like glue and will not allow another Pokemon to follow. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Professor," Serena said, shyly.

"Good, I wish you the best of luck!"

* * *

><p>"Hello?" Serena asked nobody in particular, as she wandered around the forest.<p>

A rustling came from a bush nearby. Serena gave a surprised squeal and tried to run; however, she tripped over a rock and fell down, thus scraping her knee.

Serena winced in pain and closed her eyes, feeling tears that threatened to come out.

"I didn't even want to come to summer camp...mommy!" the little girl cried out, with tears falling down full force.

The rustling became louder and louder until she heard a voice.

"Pikachu! Pikachu, where are you?!"

A boy around the same age, wearing a sleeveless yellow and red shirt withal pair of blue shorts and sandals popped out of the bushes. He had warm brown eyes and black messy hair.

"What are you doing?" Ash pointed at Serena.

Serena remained silent and simply stared at the boy. Ash sensed her shyness and decided to introduce himself.

"My name's Ash, what about you? What's wrong?" Ash asked in curiosity and worry.

"I...I hurt my leg..." she said, weakly.

"I can help with that! Here," Ash said, bending down in front of Serena and tying a light blue handkerchief with a small Pokeball insignia, around her knee tightly.

"There! That's a good luck charm; you should be able to stand up now!" Ash stood up and placed his hands on his hips.

"I can't! It hurts too much!" Serena cried out.

Ash smiled as he offered her his hand.

"Don't give up until it's over!"

Serena grabbed his hand in uncertainty but it was soon replaced with shock as he pulled her up a bit too strong and she landed in his arms. The position they were in was similar to a hug but without the use of their arms.

Serena broke the hug and looked at Ash in surprise.

"See? You stood up! Now come on! Let's find our Pokemon together!" the boy said, holding her hand a little tighter, guiding her around.

Serena on the other hand had a distracted look on her face as well as a fairly obvious blush.

"Pikapi!"

Ash looked to his side and saw a yellow mouse jump towards him. The mouse had two pointy ears, with black tips, red cheeks, three brown stripes on his back, and a lightning bolt shaped tail.

"Pikachu!" Ash screamed, catching the Electric-Type with his free arm.

"Pika!"

"You found him?! Where?"

The mouse responded by pointing into a certain direction.

"Then let's go! Oh, I almost forgot! Serena, this is Pikachu, a Pokemon my dad gave me. Pikachu, this is Serena, a girl I just met." Ash introduced.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu greeted.

"Nice to meet you Pikachu..." Serena said shyly, while she squeezed Ash's hand for comfort.

"It's okay, Pikachu is very friendly." Ash squeezed her hand in return without looking back, too focused on finding what he told Pikachu to look for.

"Aha! Found you!" Ash shouted at a lizard like Pokemon.

"Char?" the Charmander responded, tilting its head.

Charmander was a bipedal orange Pokemon with big blue eyes and a yellow underbelly. It had razor sharp claws as well as a fire burning at the tip of its tail. Taking a clear look at its appearance, it greatly resembled a salamander.

"Charmander, I choose you!" Ash shouted with enthusiasm.

"Char…mander!" The Kanto Starter nodded walking towards Ash while the Pallet native let Pikachu out of his arm's grasp so the two Pokemon could talk to each other.

"So Serena, what Pokemon are you looking for?" Ash asked.

"Um…I don't know," she said bashfully.

"Why don't you take a look at the list?"

Serena nodded and looked at the list of Pokemon Professor Oak gave her and her eyes landed on one Pokemon's picture. It was a Pokemon called Fennekin.

"This one looks really cute and reminds me a bit of home," Serena said to herself, forgetting that Ash was next to her.

"Hm…Fennekin, I haven't heard of that Pokemon," Ash commented, startling Serena. She let out a yelp and had to let go of his hand as she landed on her butt.

"Oops…sorry Serena. I didn't mean to scare you," Ash apologized to the surprised girl.

"I-It's okay..." she said in a hushed voice, feeling much more embarrassed and shy than she ever felt before.

Ash offered her his hand once again and she graciously accepted it, only this time the boy was more careful about pulling her up.

However, while Ash was pulling her up, something caught his eye. It was a blur of yellow and orange that was hidden among the blades of grass.

"Hey, Serena, I think I found your Fennekin," Ash said with a huge grin.

"Really? Where?" she asked, looking around frantically.

"There!" Ash proclaimed, pointing to a certain spot on the grass field.

The two along with Charmander and Pikachu walked up to the spot and as luck would have it, the yellow and orange blur was in fact a Fennekin, although it was curled up and taking a peaceful nap.

Fennekin had the appearance similar to a fox. It was a quadruped Pokemon with yellow fur. It had to big pointy ears with tufts of dark orange fur coming out. Fennekin also had a smooth and well groomed tail that transitioned from the color yellow to orange.

Serena approached it and tapped it on its nose, cause the fox to stir and eventually wake up.

"Hi, Fennekin, would you please come with me?" she asked, in a low but sweet voice.

"Fen!" the fox barked and walked up to the other two Pokemon beside Ash.

"Well…that's taken care of, let's head back to camp," Ash said, leading her by the hand.

Serena smiled at his enthusiasm and at the comfort his hand provided.

* * *

><p>"It has been a great day! All of you found some pretty rare Pokemon during our contest today, such as Ash finding a Charmander, May finding a Munchlax, Dawn finding a Cyndaquil, and Gary finding an Elekid, which are all very rare Pokemon in the Kanto Region due to them being native from other regions or in Ash and Dawn's case, not common in the wild. However, the winner of the contest is the newest person to move into Pallet Town, Serena! Serena has won not only by finding a rare Pokemon but the rarest one on the list, a Pokemon from the Kalos Region that my good friend, Professor Sycamore, gave me! Congratulations Serena, you get to keep Fennekin, but remember that you will also get to pick someone who will keep the Pokemon they found, now who is your choice?" Professor Oak asked.<p>

Serena walked up on stage after seeing Professor Oak motioning her to do so. She stood at the center and started getting nervous. She wasn't really a shy girl but being around new people made her feel that way, and the large crowd wasn't helping. Her knees shook and she struggled to give everyone her answer, especially when nearly every kid in Pallet Town was attending the camp, giving her their undivided attention.

"I-I p-p-pick Ash…" Serena managed to stutter out.

"Really?! Thank you Serena!" Ash said, jumping onto the stage and giving her a huge hug, spinning her around in the process.

Serena's reaction to the hug was priceless; her face was burning and her heart started beating really fast. She didn't respond to the hug but just stood there with a distant look on her face.

"Looks like Ashy-boy got himself a girlfriend!" Gary mocked from afar.

The statement caused Ash to let go of Serena and rub his head in embarrassment.

"Hehehe….sorry about that," he said nervously, while Serena could only look at the ground and nod.

"That wraps up today of our Pokemon Summer Camp; unfortunately, it's our last day. But don't worry, there's always next year!" Professor Oak announced.

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><p>After everybody's parents picked them up, Serena and Ash were the only ones left at the Professor's laboratory, and the time they both had really brought them closer as friends. They discussed what they liked and disliked and Serena even talked about where she came from which had been a pretty touchy subject throughout the day.<p>

"Ash sweetie…sorry I'm late, I was welcoming someone who just moved int-" Delia stopped talking after seeing the scene in front of her. Serena and Ash were on a couch, but what shocked her was the position they were in. Serena's head was leaning on his shoulder and Ash's head was leaning on her head. Pikachu and Charmander were both curled up on Ash's lap while Fennekin was curled up on Serena's lap.

"Psst…Grace, is that your daughter Serena?" Delia called out to the Rhyhorn Racer behind her.

Grace peeked into the room and was surprised at the scene herself.

"That's Serena, so I'm guessing that's Ash?" she whispered back as she and Delia made their way towards the kids quietly and carried their respective child and Pokemon in their arms.

"That was a real coincidence. I hope they become good friends."

"I hope they become more than friends," Delia said, jokingly, causing both women to giggle.

"It was nice meeting you Grace!" Delia said.

"You too! Why don't you and Ash come over tomorrow morning?" Grace asked.

"We'd love to!"

"Great! That'll give the kids more time to spend with each other," Grace said with a wink.

Both women giggled at the thought of their children dating but in all honesty they both didn't mind since the kids seem cute together, at least they were in their eyes.

"Goodbye, Delia," Grace said, walking to her new home with Serena in her arms.

"Bye, Grace!" Delia responded, walking into the other direction with her son in her arms as well.

The two kids were sleeping with smiles on their faces, happy about making a new friend today and even happier that they met each other.

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><p>"What happened?" Serena asked aloud, looking around and noticing that she was in an unfamiliar room.<p>

She felt something on her knee and looked down, as she did so, she spotted a blue handkerchief with a small Pokeball symbol on it. Suddenly, it all came back to her: moving to Pallet Town, attending Professor Oak's Summer Camp, falling in the forest, winning Fennekin, and meeting….Ash.

She blushed at the thought of the raven-haired boy. He was just so sweet and cheerful, and in her eyes, he was also cute.

During her musings, she heard the door swing open and her mother coming into her room.

"Serena! Glad you're up! Professor Oak called me yesterday and told me about how you won the contest! Congratulations! How do you like your room so far?" Grace greeted, praised, and asked all in one go.

Her room was rather spacious. She had a brown wooden study desk with a green trash beside it. There was also a double door closet with the same shade of brown as her desk. In the middle of the room was a small Pokeball shaped table with a couple of Pokemon plush toys on it and the wallpaper had a cream yellow color with lavender stripes. All in all, it was a pretty decent room for Serena, although she thought that she could add a few more things as she grew up.

Then it suddenly hit her.

"Mom, do you know where Fennekin is?"

"Don't worry about that; Delia and I brought Fennekin, along with Ash's Pikachu and Charmander back with us. Fennekin is sleeping downstairs," Grace said with a smile.

"Who's Delia?" Serena asked.

"She's Ash's mother, and they're coming over, so get up and change into a fresh pair of clothes. I was going to tell you to change last night but you were too tired," Grace stated.

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><p>"Ashy, wake up," Delia shook her son as he slept peacefully on his bed.<p>

"Mom…five more minutes..." Ash groaned, turning around so his back was facing Delia.

"If you wait five more minutes then you'll have to skip breakfast," Delia stood up and walked out of the room, knowing that her bluff would get Ash out of bed in record time.

Not a minute after, Ash came running down the stairs, all dressed in the same attire he wore yesterday while carrying a toothbrush, that sticking out of his mouth.

"Ash, finish brushing your teeth before you come down!" Delia scolded lightly.

Ash just nodded and ran back up the stairs so he could rinse his mouth. He came running down the stairs a second time, this time without the toothbrush and he had Charmander and Pikachu following him.

"Good, now grab the sandwich I made you and we can eat on our way to Grace's house," Delia said, opening the door.

"Who's Grace?" Ash asked.

"She's Serena's mother," Delia informed.

"Why are we going there?"

"Because Grace and I would like to get to know each other more! I invited her over yesterday while you were at Summer Camp and we talked for hours! That's why we lost track of time and forgot to pick you up," Delia said, getting slightly embarrassed at the thought of forgetting to pick up her own son.

To her surprise, Ash didn't react negatively.

"It's okay mom! Serena and I got to talk about so many things! I'm glad we get to play today!"

"Aw...my little Ashy has a girlfriend..."

"Mom! Serena is just my friend!" Ash defended, raising his hands in defense as his cheeks started turning a little pink.

"Then why do you want to see her so badly?"

"I want to get to know her better. She seems nice but she's so shy whenever I wanna talk to her."

"There's nothing with having a crush on her Ashy, I understand how kids these days are."

"Mom!" Ash exclaimed in embarrassment.

"I'm just teasing you sweetie! But jokes aside, I wouldn't mind seeing you get together with Serena one of these days," Delia smiled.

Ash just ignored his mother's comment and walked a bit more to the side to avoid further embarrassment.

"They grow up so fast...it's just so cute!" Delia squealed.

All the while, Charmander and Pikachu snickered at the human interaction.

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><p>They continued to walk down the path until they came face to face with a large house. The house, unlike the houses of other residents in their neighborhood, had grey brick walls instead of white wooden walls and the roof was made up of slightly curved red roof tiles, which closely resembled the one Professor Oak's laboratory had. It had to be the biggest house in the neighborhood, one that could even rival Professor Oak's.<p>

They stepped through a gate and spotted a Rhyhorn inside of a small Pokemon house. They continued to advance to the wooden door and knocked on it twice.

Ash suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder. He spun around and came face to face with Serena, or at least the top of her straw hat.

"Hi...Ash," Serena greeted shyly.

"Hi, Serena!" the boy greeted back with a grin.

"Do you…want to go and play at the park today?"

"Sure! I'd like that!" Ash responded with a large smile plastered on his face.

"Mom, Serena and I will go to the park. Is that okay?" Ash asked his mother.

"Sure! Just be sure to be back here by lunch," Delia reminded.

The two kids and their Pokemon nodded and walked towards the park, which was conveniently a block away from Serena's house.

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><p>The pair was really enjoying each other's company on their way to the park, just making small talk, until Ash asked an interesting question.<p>

"So Serena, are you going to go to Pallet High School when we turn ten?" Ash asked.

"I don't know...my mom mentioned it but I don't know if she'll send me there or not," Serena muttered, audible enough for Ash to hear.

"Well if you'll go, let's be classmates!" Ash suggested giving her a thumbs up. This gesture helped Serena relax and wiped away any remaining shyness she had.

"You bet!" she responded.

The two finally arrived at the park and spotted the playground. Thankfully, the playground had no other kids on it so the two could enjoy their time.

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed, running towards the swing with Fennekin and Charmander right behind him.

"So where do you wanna play?" Ash asked.

"The swings look fun," Serena said, seeing the Pokemon playing on three of the four swings. She grabbed Ash's hand and walked up to the black swing set.

"Do you want me to push you?"

"Is it okay with you?"

"Sure!"

Serena was hesitant but figured that Ash was fine with pushing her on the swing, since it was solely his idea. So she got on the seat and Ash started pushing.

"Ash, push me higher!" Serena shouted in joy.

"Okay!" Ash pushed her back harder, making her go sky high.

Unfortunately, when Ash pushed Serena higher, the blond-haired girl's grip on the swing chains slipped and she came crashing on the ground, bruising and scraping her knee.

"Ow…." Serena cried, with tears flowing down her face which showed nothing but excruciating pain.

"Serena! I'm so sorry!" Ash ran to her side and bent down to take a look at her knee, with the Pokemon following his lead.

"I-It's okay Ash…." Serena assured him, however the tears on her face told him otherwise.

"Let's get you home then…" Ash walked in front of her, with his back facing her, and bent down.

"W-What a-a-are you d-doing?!" Serena asked, completely flustered at the thought of Ash having her on his back.

"We need to get you to your house so your mom can help with that."

"Oh….alright," Serena said in defeat.

Serena stood up, rather wobbly, and got onto Ash's back and wrapped her arms around his neck from behind. Ash reciprocated the action by using his hands to hold the back of her knees in order to support the injured child.

The pair walked in silence while Fennekin, Pikachu, and Charmander conversed with each other while they walked by Ash's side; the silence was soon broken by Serena's voice.

"I'm really sorry about this Ash…today was gonna be a fun day but now it's not a fun day anymore because I fell," Serena said.

"No, it's okay Serena. Besides, it's my fault for pushing you so hard on the swing." Ash lifted Serena a little bit.

"Then I guess it's both our faults!" Serena said rather jokingly, while she looked at him from the side and gave him a wink and stuck her tongue out.

"Yeah…I guess it is," Ash said in amusement.

The two children then looked at each other and showed a toothy grin as Ash carried Serena back to her house.

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><p>To be continued…<p>

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><p><em>Hope you guys like the slight changes I made! I put chapter one and two to put all their childhood experiences in one chapter because the next chapter will have a huge time skip! Follow, favorite, and review! I'm going to work on the next chapter of my other story so now you know my schedule. I'll alternate with my updates. :)<em>


	2. Chapter 2

Hi guys! Here's the second chapter! Thanks to those who followed, favorited, and reviewed!

There was one question in the reviews I want to address. Ash and Serena are not in high school yet. They're just in a school called Pallet High, so that doesn't necessarily mean they're high school students already

So enjoy! Question of the chapter: If you were to choose, what is your favorite Pokemon for competitive battling? Leave you answers in the reviews section! :D

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><p>The sound of a school bell rang throughout the long white hallways of Pallet High; it was soon accompanied by the sound of kids and teenagers talking.<p>

Coming out of a fifth grade classroom was a group of ten-year olds.

The first person was a boy wearing a sleeveless blue hoodie, with two pockets, over a black t-shirt, a pair of light jeans, black and blue sneakers, black fingerless gloves with green wristbands, and a red cap with a white semicircle. He had messy black hair and two birthmarks in the shape of a sideway 'z'; one on each cheek.

Next to him was another boy. This one had spiky brown hair. He was wearing a plain long sleeved indigo shirt and a pair of dark blue jeans, accompanied by a pair of black running shoes.

They were Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak, the best Trainers in the Pokemon Battling Team.

"So do you guys have any plans for later?" Gary turned towards the rest of the group as he asked this.

The group consisted of three girls and two more guys.

The first girl had honey blond hair and was wearing a green baseball cap backwards. She wore a yellow shirt that exposed her stomach and a pair of green shorts. She had a pair of yellow and green sneakers and wore a pair of black glasses that highlighted her bright cyan blue eyes.

Next to her were two more girls. One had long dark blue hair under a white beanie, dressed in a sleeveless pink and black v-neck with a matching pink and black miniskirt, along with a pair of black socks and pink boots that reached just below her knees. The other girl had short brown hair that looked like an inverted 'v', tied by a red bandana that had an. She was wearing a form fitting red shirt that had a red collar and a navy blue stripe that outlined where her collarbone should be. She also wore matching navy blue biker shorts and red sneakers; whether it was a coincidence or not, they both had sapphire blue eyes.

They were Serena, Dawn Berlitz, and May Maple respectively.

"Well, I wanna watch Ash battle Lumiose High tonight," said Serena.

Behind the girls were two guys. One of them had yellow blond hair. He had a pair of large circular glasses and was wearing a blue jumpsuit. While the other one had short dark brown hair and constantly squinted eyes. He wore an orange t-shirt with dark brown pants, a pair of black and white sneakers, and a green vest that had two pouches on each side.

"I'm gonna head over to Lucy's house! I think I have a chance with her!" Brock proclaimed with confidence.

"Brock, you always say that! Just last week, you got charged with stalking, sexual assault, and got locked up in jail for five hours just because you got too close the Chief of Police's daughter and asked her if she 'wanted to come over tonight' right in front of her dad!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Can you blame me? Jenny's my soulmate!"

"Yeah…soulmate…that's the word…" Ash said, earning a couple of giggles from the girls and some chuckles from the guys, other than Brock.

"Well, you wouldn't know, you and Gary have girls knocking on your door every secon-ouch! What was that for, May?!"

May gave Brock a serious stare and shook her head sideways, although it was very unnoticeable.

"Clemont, how about you?" Ash asked his inventor friend.

"I need to walk my sister home, sorry. Maybe another time though."

"While you do that, could you walk Max home too? Please! I want to watch the big match without being annoyed." May begged.

"Alright, no problem. They're in the same class anyway."

"Thanks!"

Gary took a good look at his watch and noticed that it was almost time for him and Ash to go.

"Guys, let's go! We still need to pick up Pikachu from the school's daycare!" Gary reminded the group.

"Oh yeah, I forgot! See you two tomorrow!" Ash said, running off into the direction of the school's daycare with Gary, Serena, May, and Dawn right behind him.

"See ya! Good luck with the match!" Brock called out.

* * *

><p>"Nurse Joy? Could I get Pikachu back?" Ash asked.<p>

"Sure thing, Ash! Just give me a minute," Nurse Joy said.

"I still don't get it Ash, just put Pikachu back in his ball!" Gary complained.

"Did you forget the last time you suggested that? You had to spend a whole week repainting the bleachers!" Ash retorted, embarrassing Gary with his old mistakes.

"Here you go, Ash!" Nurse Joy came out with Pikachu in her arms.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu squealed and hopped on the raven-haired boy's shoulder.

"Hi buddy! Ready to win?"

"Pika!"

"Then let's go! Thanks again Nurse Joy!" Ash turned around and ran out the door.

"He really needs to chill out…" May murmured, chasing the boy.

'But that's why I like him…' Serena thought.

* * *

><p>"Welcome everyone to the match that decides which school gets the championship title of the Junior Division Pokemon Regional Championship! We have a great match today! We'll be kicking off with a double battle between Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak, who are representing Pallet High, against Paul Shinji and Calem Sycamore, representing Lumiose High all the way from the Kalos Region! After that, Lumiose High will be switching LaRousse and Black for two of their bench battlers, Kenny and Drew LaRousse!" the commentator announced.<p>

As the commentator finished his introduction, Ash and Gary came out of one side of the ring while Paul and Calem came out of the other, both sneering at Ash and Gary.

By all means, Lumiose High was an excellent school, but it was notorious for its rich and stuck up students, not to mention the students were infamous for constantly hiring prostitutes. Why? Well, they were an all-boys school, so some guys are bound to crave for intimacy.

"Each Trainer from Pallet High may use two Pokemon while the Trainers from Lumiose High may only use one Pokemon each due to the substitution of battlers. To keep the battle fair, substitutions are not allowed. Since Pallet High is the home team, they may choose their Pokemon first and make the first move." the referee said.

"Charmander/Wartortle, I choose you!" Gary and Ash called out in unison, each throwing out their Pokeballs.

From Ash's Pokeball was a familiar orange Lizard Pokemon. Everybody in school knew about how Ash got that Charmander. It was also the day he met Serena.

From Gary's Pokeball came a blue turtle-like Pokemon. It had large brown eyes and a dark blue streak running across each cheek. It had a brown shell that had a light yellow underside and sky blue fur covering its long ears and tail.

"Chimchar, standby for battle!"

"Go, Froakie!"

The opposing team tossed their Pokeballs and revealed two Pokemon not common in the Kanto Region.

The first one was a small yellow chimpanzee Pokemon covered in orange fur. It had black eyes, a swirl of fur on top of its head, and a small flame burning on its backside. The second Pokemon was a blue frog with large yellow eyes. It had white hands, a small mane made up of white foam, two lumps of foam that covered its nose, and a dark blue stripe that connected from the back of its head to its nose.

"Begin!"

"Charmander, use Slash on Froakie!"

"Wartortle, Aqua Tail on Chimchar!"

Charmander's claws glowed white and extended as he charged towards Froakie, while Wartortle collected water from the air and made it condense onto its tail.

"Chimchar, Fake Out!"

"Froakie, Lick!"

Chimchar dashed forward, suddenly disappearing and reappearing in front of Wartortle in less than a second. It clapped its hand and released a powerful shockwave that made the Turtle Pokemon flinch.

Froakie, on the other hand, launched its tongue at Charmander but missed its target; however, when Charmander reached Froakie and attacked it, the Slash attack just phased through the Kalos Pokemon.

"What just happened?!" Ash exclaimed.

"Gramps told me about this once. There is a rare ability only Froakie and its evolutionary line can have. It's called Protean. Whatever attack it uses, it will change into that type, regardless if the attack hits or misses." Gary gritted his teeth as he said this, these two were not ordinary Trainers.

"Too late, Froakie, Water Pulse!" Calem ordered.

"Chimchar, Assist!"

Froakie formed a sphere of water and rammed it against Charmander's stomach, sending the Fire-Type backwards and causing it tremendous amounts of damage.

"Charmander!" Ash cried out.

Meanwhile, Chimchar's hand got enveloped by a white light and formed a spherical shape. It slammed its hand onto the ground and large spiky vines and tendrils came out of the ground and repeatedly lashed out against Wartortle.

"Wartortle, hide in your shell to lessen the damage!"

Wartortle did exactly what Gary ordered it to do and hid in its shell.

"Well will you look at that! Paul's Chimchar had a lucky draw from using Assist and is now using one of the most powerful Grass-Type attacks, Frenzy Plant!" the commentator informed.

But what everyone didn't know was that Chimchar didn't rely on luck because Paul only kept one other Pokemon in his party at the time, just in case Chimchar would be too weak to win with its own power.

"Charmander, while Chimchar is recharging, use Dragon Rush!"

"Wartortle, use Aqua Ring!"

Charmander concentrated and summoned a bright blue aura around it. It charged towards its fellow Fire Starter while Wartortle summoned rings of water, steadily healing itself.

"Froakie, Water Pledge!"

Froakie slammed its fist onto the ground, summoning multiple pillars of water that surrounded Charamander; however, not a second later, Charmander broke through the attack and crashed into its two opponents.

"Wartortle, let's finish this! Aura Sphere!"

"Charmander, Dragon Pulse!"

The two Kanto Starters formed their attacks. Wartortle had created a blue ball of aura between its hands while Charmander had a green ball of draconic energy in front of his mouth. They both released their attacks into the smoke, which was presumably where the opponents were. The two attacks crashed into something and caused a powerful explosion.

After the explosion died down, Chimchar and Froakie could be seen lying on the ground, unconscious.

"Chimcahr and Froakie are unable to battle, Charmander and Wartortle win! Which means the first win goes to Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak!"

"All right!" Ash turned around and gave Gray a hi-five.

"Now, Drew LaRousse and Kenny, please come out on the battling arena," the referee said.

"Now the two Trainers from Lumiose High are going to be replaced with two new bench Trainers! Both of them are new in the battling circuit but they are both well known for their reputations; Drew being a veteran Pokemon Coordinator, despite his young age, and Kenny being the son of the Sinnoh Battle Frontier Brain, Palmer; as well as being the brother of Senior Pokemon Division Finalist, Barry!" the commentators introduced the two.

"Same rules apply, now send out your Pokemon!"

"Let's do this Pikachu!"

"Electabuzz, come on out!"

"Don't fail me, Heracross!"

"Treecko, let's win this!"

The first Pokeball opened and revealed a humanoid Pokemon covered in yellow fur with black stripes. It had two antennas with rounded tips, two sharp fangs, three claws on each foot, and a long cat-like tail.

The Pokeballs from the other side opened up and released a blue beetle Pokemon. It had two claws on each hand and a single claw on each foot. The most prominent feature was this Pokemon's large singular horn and the two antennas the came out at the base of either side of its horn. The other Pokeball revealed a small green reptilian Pokemon. It had big yellow eyes and a red underbelly. Its hands and feet had three blunt digits each and had a large dark green tail that looked like it was separated into two.

"Begin!"

"Let's finish this in one move, these amateurs don't know what they're up against. Treecko, Leaf Storm!" Drew said smugly.

"Heracross, Hyper Beam!" Silver commanded.

Treecko spun around in the air, forming a vortex of shining green leaves and shot them straight at Electabuzz and Pikachu while Heracross complimented the attack with a concentrated beam of energy that filled up the open space at the center of the vortex.

"Electabuzz, Protect," Gary said calmly.

Electabuzz raised both arms and summoned a protective green barrier that shielded them from the Hyper Beam and Leaf Storm combo.

"Pikachu, Volt Tackle on Heracross!"

"Electabuzz, support Pikachu and use Fire Punch on Treecko!"

Pikachu took off, running at unbelievable speed, while cloaking himself in a golden aura of electricity, while Electabuzz took off in the other direction and slammed its flame covered fist into Treecko, instantly knocking it out.

Due to Heracross's inability to move because of the mandatory recharge of Hyper Beam, Pikachu crashed into it head on, leaving a knocked out Heracross in its place.

"Heracross and Treecko are unable to battle, Pikachu and Electabuzz win! Which means the winner of the Junior Division Pokemon Regional Championship is Pallet High!"

"Pika!" Pikachu ran towards Ash and jumped into his arms.

"You did great buddy!"

"Great job Electabuzz, take a nice rest." Gary took out the Electric-Type's Pokeball and returned it.

"And here we have an unexpected turn of events! Pallet High has taken out Lumiose High's bench team with one blow to each of their Pokemon! And now, they're going to be crowned Champions!" the commentator rejoiced.

* * *

><p>Ash and Gary were now at the parking lot with Pikachu. They decided to take a break from the wild after-party.<p>

"That was a great battle Pikachu!" Ash held Pikachu up high in front of him.

Suddenly, the raven-haired Trainer felt something heavy on his back. He turned his head and saw the smiling face of a girl with honey blond hair. She had he legs wrapped around Ash's waist and her arms around his neck form behind; it reminded them both of the time Serena fell from the swing they were playing on when they were little.

"You were great, both of you!" She squealed.

"Hahahaha, thanks Serena!"

"Hey, don't I get something for winning?" Gary joked.

"Don't worry, we didn't forget you," Dawn said, giving Gary his own hug.

"Ehem!"

Everyone turned their heads to the source of the voice; it was from Calem, Drew, and Kenny.

Calem was an average boy. He had straight long hair that stopped a little above his shoulders and wore a pair of sunglasses. He was wearing a plain blue long sleeved shirt, a pair of jeans, and a pair of black boots.

Drew was a little odd. He had green hair and wore a black shirt under a purple short sleeved vest. He had a pair of purple pants and black loafers.

Lastly, was Kenny, the one who had bushy dark brown hair. He wore a light green t-shirt over a dark green long sleeved shirt, along with a pair of gray pants.

"It was a gre-" Gary started but was promptly interrupted.

"Shut up, we didn't come to talk with second rate trash like you. Hey, you, the hot girl with the big chest, wanna spend the night somewhere?" Drew asked rather boldly, a little too boldly, eyeing May's chest nonchalantly while everyone was shocked by his confidence, perverted mind, and rudeness. Looks like the rumors about Lumiose High may be true after all.

"What did you say about my daughter?" A new voice boomed out, filled with anger and malice, making Drew turn around.

"Who the hell are y-" This time, Drew was the one who was cut off when a fist came in contact with his face.

The attacker was a tall burly man with blue hair. He wore a short sleeved red jacket and a pair of black slacks with a pair of brown sandals.

"What the hell?! Who do you think you are?!" Drew shouted clutching his throbbing head.

"I'm the referee and that girl's father! And who do YOU think YOU are talking to my daughter like that!" Norman shouted.

The loud shout was enough to scare Drew away, but not the other two.

"How about you? Seems like you want some action if you're that clingy," Calem said, referring to Serena.

The next thing the group heard was a shriek. Dawn had screamed when she felt something on her butt.

"Man…that's a nice ass, I don't think that skirt of yours is short enough to show this off," Kenny said, still groping Dawn's backside.

"Get away from me!" Dawn pushed the boy off and delivered a strong slap across his cheek.

"Norman, could you help us out here?" Ash asked, clearly irritated.

"My pleasure," Norman said, grabbing the remaining boys by the back of their collars and lifting them off the ground.

"Let us go old man!" Calem screamed.

"I'll sue you if you even TRY to hurt us!" Kenny threatened.

"I can say the same thing about you for sexual assault," Norman retorted before tossing the two boys across the parking lot. The two landed pretty hard but they looked relatively unharmed. The two got up and started running, in fear that Norma might do something even worse if they stuck around any longer.

"You okay, Dawn?" Ash asked, letting Serena off his back.

Dawn said nothing but launched herself towards Ash in an extreme need for comfort and protection. She buried her face into his chest and started sobbing.

"Don't worry, he's not here anymore…" Ash whispered soothingly, running his hand up and down her back.

Everyone was extremely concerned. It was the first time anyone of them had witnessed an actual sexual assault and it was also the first time for the kids to have met such disgusting people. Although for Norman, it wasn't the first time for him to see such people. In fact, he saw these kinds of people on a weekly basis when he refereed at other schools.

Dawn continued to sob into Ash's chest, although it was lessening. He was about to pull away when the group heard a loud shout.

"What was that?" Gary asked.

"Let's check it out, it sounds like it was coming from the fields," Ash said.

* * *

><p>"You pathetic incompetent losers! How could you lose to opponents three years younger than you?!" The voice came from a man with short black hair dressed in a tuxedo.<p>

"Paul is the only one I can excuse here since he is actually ten but the three of you are thirteen! How could you lose?!"

"Won't happen again coach!" Calem said.

"Good! Now get in the helicopter and let's go!"

Before getting on, the four nodded to each other and each took out a Pokeball and released the Pokemon inside.

"You're pathetic Chimchar, even with Torterra's help, you couldn't win today. I'm done with you," Paul said coldly.

"I don't need a weak Pokemon on my team. I honestly thought you could reach the potential Roserade had but looks like I was wrong," Drew said to Treecko.

"Buying you off of the black market was nothing but a waste of money. You're just some runt who doesn't deserve to be trained." Froakie looked down as he heard Calem's insults.

"And finally, you! All you can do is find and drink tree sap! Barry said he trained you extremely hard but I guess that's useless if the Pokemon has no talent whatsoever. I'll just catch another Heracross back home. Barry won't know the difference, he's an idiot anyway," Kenny spoke with unreasonable anger.

The four battlers climbed onto the helicopter as it took off, leaving their Pokemon in an unfamiliar region.

"Those bastards, how could they?!" Ash shouted with anger as soon as the helicopter flew over them.

"I've never seen such cruelty from Pokemon Trainers," Norman said in a sad tone.

"I think they deserve a second chance." Ash stood up and walked towards the group of newly abandoned Pokemon.

"Ash, what are yo-" Serena was cut off as soon as Norman held his arm in front of the honey blond.

"This will be good for the Pokemon and for Ash. Just watch," the older man reassured.

Chimchar was currently crying its eyes out, while Heracross held back its tears; however, Froakie and Treecko were shaking in anger.

"Hey." The Pokemon all heard the call and turned around.

All of them suddenly took a defensive stance and prepared an attack. After all, this was the Trainer that caused them this problem in the first place.

"Hold on! I'm not here to fight. I think what your Trainers did to all of you is unforgivable, but you don't have to stay mad. Come and join me, Charmander, and Pikachu. We can become the greatest team, together. We'll show those guys that they were wrong to just toss you aside like that! What do you say?" Ash reached out to them with his right hand.

The four Pokemon looked and discussed the situation briefly and returned to staring at Ash intently.

Froakie then stepped forward and pointed to one of the Pokeballs on Ash's belt, then it pointed to itself just before it turned its hand into a blade and slashed the long grass around it.

"So you want me to battle the four of you if I want you to be part of my team?"

Froakie nodded.

"Then give me a little time. If I'm going to find and catch the four of you, I'm gonna need all the training I can get. Just promise me that you'll be here five days from now," Ash explained.

All four Pokemon nodded before they scattered to who knows where.

"Ash!"

Ash turned around and saw his friends coming towards him.

"That was great, Ash. How you dealt with those Pokemon, I mean," Norman complimented.

"Thanks Norman."

"But, I would like to help you train for when you catch those Pokemon. Come to my house every day after class, you can tag along with May," Norman offered.

"Sure! That's going to be a big help!"

"Can I come along too?" Serena asked suddenly.

"Sure! We can hang out after!" Ash smiled, making Serena blush.

* * *

><p>School was over. Ash, Pikachu, Serena, and May were now walking down the street that lead to the Petalburg District, where her father's old Pokemon Gym used to be.<p>

"So Ash, how are you feeling? You're gonna get to battle a retired Gym Leader," May asked.

"Pretty psyched! I can't wait for Pikachu and Charmander to grow stronger!"

Serena just looked at Ash, smiling with a a tinge of pink and red on her cheeks. Several scenarios going through her mind on what she and Ash could do after his training, che just couldn't wait to finally spend some quality time with him!

"Here we are!" May exclaimed and faced her two friends and presented her house, which also happened to be her father's gym.

"Wow, May! Your house is huge! Now, I REALLY can't wait!" Ash pumped his fist into the air as he said this.

"Let's get started then." May opened the door and let the three inside.

"Pika…." Pikachu breathed out at the sight of the gym.

"Welcome, Ash, Serena, and Pikachu! Especially you, Ash; prepare to feel the hardest workout you've ever had!" Norman welcomed the three into his gym.

"Now, let's begin. Go, Slaking!"

A large shadow of a humanoid Pokemon covered the three teenagers and Pikachu. Ash gulped audibly; when Norman says it'll be the hardest workout they ever had, he wasn't kidding one bit.

* * *

><p><em>To Be Continued…..<em>

* * *

><p>Here it is! Unlike Reunion of Memories, I'm going to keep this story's chapter constantly at a 4000 word minimum instead of 2000 since some of my readers think it's too short. But I want the chapters to have a consistent number, so I'll just apply the longer chapters in this story. Remember to review, follow, and favorite!<p> 


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